Self-Centered Ants

"[Let] nothing [be done] through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves."

It's a challenge, even for the Christian, to get along with lazy, selfish people. This is because they also tend to be quarrelsome, especially when their desires are not met. Now scientists have discovered that the phrase "industrious as an ant" does not apply to all ants. They report that they have found an entire ant society that is lazy, selfish and quarrelsome.

Sometimes a society is pleasant to live in and sometimes it's not. Not all ant societies are harmonious examples of cooperation. One ant society, popularly called the slave-makers, must be a miserable place to live. Slave-making ants make their living by plundering the nests of other species and making slaves of their captives. Slave ants are forced to feed, house and even defend their masters.

This leaves the slave-making ants with a great deal of idle time. Most of that idle time is spent in endless squabbles with each other over social status. The higher a slave-maker's status, the more service from a slave she receives. It would seem that just as idle human hands can lead to strife between people, idle ants tend to fight with each other too.

This universal linking of selfishness, laziness and fighting tells us that there are indeed universal moral truths. It shows us that those who say there is no absolute morality are wrong. Perhaps God has allowed this ant society to corrupt itself so we could have a scientific basis to reject today's moral relativism.

Prayer:

I thank You, Father, that You wish me to live my life in joy rather than strife. Forgive my selfishness and tendency to feel that I have not received as much as I deserve. Fill me instead with thanksgiving toward You and love for those around me. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

Notes:

"Antagonistic ants." Discover, Nov. 1983. p. 14.

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